Balance the following the chemical equation:
____ C2H6 +____ O2 → ____CO2 +____ H2O
2 C2H6 + 7 O2 → 4 CO2 + 6 H2O
To balance the chemical equation, follow these steps:
Step 1: Count the number of atoms of each element on both sides of the equation.
C: 2 on the left, 1 on the right
H: 6 on the left, 2 on the right
O: 2 on the left, 3 on the right
Step 2: Start balancing with the most complex molecule first. In this case, it's CO2.
C: 1 on the left (from C2H6), 1 on the right
O: 2 on the left, 2 on the right
Step 3: Now balance the oxygen atoms by adding a coefficient to O2.
C2H6 + ____ O2 → 2 CO2 + ____ H2O
Step 4: Next, balance the hydrogen atoms. This is done by adding a coefficient to H2O.
C2H6 + ____ O2 → 2 CO2 + 3 H2O
Step 5: Finally, balance the carbon atoms. This is done by adding a coefficient to C2H6.
2 C2H6 + ____ O2 → 4 CO2 + 6 H2O
The balanced chemical equation is:
2 C2H6 + ____ O2 → 4 CO2 + 6 H2O
Please note that the coefficient for O2 is not provided in the question, so it cannot be determined without additional information.
To balance this chemical equation, you need to ensure that the number of atoms of each element is the same on both sides of the equation. Let's go step by step through the process of balancing this equation.
First, let's focus on carbon (C). There are two carbon atoms on the left side in the C2H6 compound, and one carbon atom on the right side in the CO2 compound. To balance the carbon, we need to put a coefficient of 2 in front of CO2:
C2H6 + ___ O2 → 2 CO2 + ___ H2O
Next, let's balance the hydrogen (H) atoms. On the left side, we have six hydrogen atoms in C2H6, while on the right side, we only have two hydrogen atoms in H2O. To balance hydrogen, we need to put a coefficient of 3 in front of the H2O:
C2H6 + ___ O2 → 2 CO2 + 3 H2O
Now, let's balance the oxygen (O) atoms. On the left side, we have two oxygen atoms in O2, while on the right side, we have four oxygen atoms in CO2 and three oxygen atoms in H2O. In total, we have seven oxygen atoms on the right side. To balance oxygen, we need to put a coefficient of 7/2 or 3.5 in front of O2:
C2H6 + 3.5 O2 → 2 CO2 + 3 H2O
However, we cannot have fractional coefficients in a balanced chemical equation, so we need to multiply all coefficients by 2 to eliminate the fraction:
2 C2H6 + 7 O2 → 4 CO2 + 6 H2O
Therefore, the balanced chemical equation is:
2 C2H6 + 7 O2 → 4 CO2 + 6 H2O